


What Love Means

by Applausejunkie



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/M, Multi, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:29:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27978126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Applausejunkie/pseuds/Applausejunkie
Summary: The world has been at peace for ten years. Aang and Katara have been married for three, and are unbelievably happy. Fire Lord Zuko, on the other hand, is growing more miserable every day as he struggles with his own feelings for Katara.
Relationships: Aang/Katara (Avatar), Aang/Katara/Zuko (Avatar), Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 31





	1. Old Love Still Hurts

**Author's Note:**

> This is an alternate universe fanfic in which the comics did not happen. Some material included in this fanfic may conflict with the canon of the comics.

It was Aang and Katara’s third wedding anniversary. Sokka and Suki were throwing them a party.

Standing alone on a balcony in the palace, Fire Lord Zuko twirled the invitation in his fingers, staring down at the city with eyes glazed over, his thoughts far away.

Aang was his best friend. He loved the Avatar like a brother, or how he assumed most people felt about their siblings. He, of course, had no firsthand experience with functional fraternal relationships. But he saw the way Sokka and Katara loved and looked out for each other, and his feelings toward Aang felt comparable.

Katara, however; well, that was more complicated. The way he felt about her was completely different, although the emotion was just as strong. But absolutely nothing about his feelings for her was like a sibling, like it was with Aang. When he thought of Aang, he was filled with a warm happiness. Thinking of Katara brought joy, yes, but it also brought a tangible sensation of longing, of being pulled in her direction, strong enough that it made his chest hurt to think of her.

Thinking back, it was no mystery to him where the longing had begun, but even before they had been imprisoned together, he had been impressed by her. When he first encountered her, her bending had been so weak that she was no threat at all. In fact, he hadn’t even known she was a waterbender at first.

But by the time he encountered her at the North Pole, she was an opponent formidable enough to keep him fighting hard all night. It had only been with the advantage of the sunrise that he had been able to subdue her long enough to get the Avatar out of there, and of course once they were out on the ice under the moonlight again, she had beaten him easily. Even when they had been on opposite sides, he had had to respect that she was an extremely powerful bender. Maybe it was this appreciation of her abilities that had opened the door for what he felt now.

It was the conversation in prison, however, that had been the catalyst. That five-minute talk had changed everything. He remembered it vividly. Her anger, the accusations, the hatred. At the time it had hurt and angered him, as if it were an unfounded insult, but now he knew she had been correct. He symbolized everything that had gone wrong for her, everything she had lost. She had every right to hate him.

And yet, as soon as she had found out about his mother, that they had that one thing in common, she had completely changed her mind, to the point that she would offer up her most powerful possession to heal him. Her innate kindness was so strong that even when faced with her most bitter adversary, her instinct was to help. It was remarkable.

Ever since that day, Katara had occupied a certain place in his mind, and nothing he did could banish her from his consciousness. Even after he betrayed her to join his sister and his father, she continued to appear unbidden in his thoughts. Her words cut him internally, and her disappointed eyes haunted his sleep. When he finally decided to choose good, there had been a sense of relief that he no longer had to fight to suppress his every thought about her.

Their relationship certainly hadn’t been easy since then, but once they had all brought peace to the world, things had been easier. At least in certain ways. He got to be close to her, to see her practically whenever he wanted, but the longing, the pull, never went away. In fact, it only got worse the closer he was to her. Sometimes it physically hurt just to look at her.

At first he hadn’t understood exactly what was going on with him, or what those feelings meant. Then, Mai had left. Maybe she had known what Zuko didn’t at the time. When it happened, Katara had been right there for him, listening empathetically when he needed to vent, even holding him the one time he had broken down in tears in front of her. She allowed him to be completely vulnerable around her with no judgement. It was the most wonderful feeling, even during a time of so much pain.

Months passed and the hurt of losing his first relationship faded. Mai’s face stopped appearing in his dreams, and he found himself able to enjoy life again. The closeness with Katara that had come from the breakup, however, remained. While he and Aang could do anything together and have a great time, he and Katara could do nothing but talk and still have a meaningful afternoon. Just being in her presence was enough.

Then one night, unbidden, he dreamt of her. He saw himself embrace her, felt her arms around him, but something was different than their usual hugs. The pull in his chest felt stronger than ever, and when she looked up at him, he saw the same emotion reflected in her eyes. Then, he watched his dream-self lean down just as dream-Katara stood up on her tiptoes. When he awoke, he was tingling all over, and very unsettled.

At first, knowing the nature of his feelings toward Katara had disturbed him. She and Aang had been together since the war ended, and they always seemed so happily in love. He didn’t want to break that up, for both of their sakes. Aang was still his best friend, and Zuko couldn’t even think of hurting him. Loving Katara had not taken away from his friendship with Aang; he wanted his friend to be happy more than he cared about his own well-being. So when he realized there was nothing he could do about his feelings for Katara, he simply resolved to keep them a secret, and that was the way things would be.

And that was the way things had been, for years. Now Zuko glanced down at the invitation in his hand and sighed. It was just another party, he reasoned; it wouldn’t be too painful. He would just keep to himself and try not to drink his feelings. It would be fine. Well, he corrected himself, everyone else would be fine.


	2. Keeping Secrets

Katara was laughing again.

The party had been going for hours; the stars twinkled overhead. Zuko could hear her laughter from within the house, and he knew she was with Aang. He stood on the porch, looking up at the sky and wondering why he couldn’t let this go. She was married to his best friend; he would never be with her in that way. It was impossible. He would just have to get over it.

Glancing down at his cup, he realized he had been unsuccessful at _not_ drinking his feelings. It was empty, again. He considered going back inside to fill it again, but for some reason, he didn’t want to look at Katara in that moment. He didn’t want to feel the pull he knew would be there when he heard her laugh, saw her smile. Instead he wanted to sit outside and wallow in his futile longing to hold her and never let her go.

“Zuko?”

The Fire Lord jumped out of his skin at the sound of a familiar voice behind him. He whirled to see Katara looking at him with her head tilted to one side and a comfortable smile that said she, too, had been indulging in the punch. Wearing her favorite party dress with her hair and makeup done perfectly, she looked so beautiful that Zuko had to turn away and lean on the porch railing so he could breathe normally.

Approaching him, Katara peered up at his face and tried to meet his eyes, but Zuko turned his head. She was too close to him; if he made eye contact with her now, he might lose control and say something that would ruin their relationship forever.

“Are you okay?” she asked when he wouldn’t look at her.

He turned his face up, as if he were looking at the stars, still not meeting her eyes. “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just…” he couldn’t think of a reason for him to be out here, besides the fact that he needed a minute alone to fight the emotions that raged inside of him. He couldn’t tell her the truth. “It’s just hot in there.”

Katara frowned. It was summer; outside was no cooler than in the house. She knew he was lying. He frowned and looked down, ashamed and frustrated. He couldn’t tell her. It would make everything awkward. Aang would hate him if he found out. Katara would never trust him again. No, it was better for everyone that he kept his feelings a secret, even if it meant telling a little white lie every now and then.

But Katara wasn’t satisfied. “What’s wrong?” she asked, and out of the corner of his eye, Zuko could see the concern on her face. He closed his eyes to block it out, but he could still feel her watching him. After so many years, she knew his every mannerism and expression, and she could tell when he was unhappy. Zuko just hoped she would never find out why.

Taking a breath, he told himself he was going to meet her eyes and lie to her face, saying he was fine. But when he looked into her worried blue eyes, his knees turned to water and his stomach filled with butterflies. He choked. Turning his head again, he muttered miserably, “I just need air. I… I drank too much.”

“Do you want some water?”

“No.”

There was a pause. Zuko sighed. “No, thank you. I just need a minute.”

Katara took a step towards him, setting a hand on his shoulder. “Why aren’t you talking to me?” she asked, and he could hear a touch of pain in her voice. Of course she could tell that wasn’t the whole story, that something else was going on. “You know you can tell me anything.”

When she touched him, Zuko had to fight not to visibly flinch. The contact burned his skin, even through his shirt, and the desire in his mind to pull her into his arms became so strong that he had to grip the porch railing with both hands. Katara noticed his knuckles turning white, and her frown deepened.

“Zuko?”

It was too much. Pulling away, the Fire Lord shook his head. “Not tonight,” he murmured. “I need to go.” He set his punch cup down on the porch railing and hurried down the steps, leaving Katara alone outside the house. He didn’t stop or look back until he had rounded a corner and he knew she could no longer see him, then he leaned his back against the alley wall and slid to the ground, dropping his head onto his knees.

He couldn’t live like this anymore. Tonight had come too close to blowing everything open and ruining everyone’s lives. Something needed to change, and quickly. The next time she looked at him like that, he might not be able to resist. No, he needed to do something.


	3. The Confession

Zuko spent the next morning alone in his chambers, fighting through a headache trying to find a way to fix things. Deleting his feelings for Katara was impossible; he couldn’t help it. Nor was it an option to simply not be around her; she was married to his best friend. They saw each other all the time. If he wanted to avoid Katara, he would have to stop seeing Aang as well.

Finally it was lunchtime, but Zuko was so preoccupied that he hardly ate a thing. Then, as he was picking at his dessert, his steward arrived and announced the presence of a visitor. Zuko hardly had a chance to look up before Aang walked into the room, immediately coming around the table to embrace the Fire Lord for the briefest of moments before pulling away and looking up at him in concern.

“Katara said you seemed pretty upset last night,” the Avatar said. “And that you wouldn’t talk to her about it. Is everything okay?”

Zuko repressed the panic rising in his gut and forced a nod and a fake smile. “Everything’s fine. Nothing to worry about.”

Unimpressed by his friend’s falseness, the airbender frowned. “You’re not gonna tell me, either?” he asked with one eyebrow raised.

“I can’t, okay?!” Zuko cried finally. “I can’t tell you. I can’t tell you because it would ruin everything, and you would hate me for it.” He threw his hands in the air in defeat and walked away, turning to glare out the window in frustration.

Aang stared at him with wide eyes for a moment, clearly not expecting such an outburst. Then he tilted his head to one side. “I would never hate you,” he said sincerely, reaching out and setting a hand on his shoulder. “Why would it ruin everything?”

“Please stop asking me.”

“Zuko, whatever this is, it’s making you miserable. You need to talk about it. I promise I won’t hate you.”

“No matter what I say?” the firebender asked, finally turning to meet the Avatar’s eyes.

Aang nodded. “No matter what. We’re best friends.”

Zuko took a deep breath and made the decision to trust him. “I think I’m in love with Katara,” he said slowly, then braced himself for his friend’s reaction.

There was a long silence during which Aang simply stared at him, blinking in surprise. Finally, Zuko sighed and shook his head. “I told you it would ruin everything.”

“So you were just gonna hide your feelings forever?”

“Yeah.”

“Zuko, that’s not healthy.”

“Well, what else is there?” he cried. “There’s nothing I can do about it. I’ve tried to stop feeling this way and I can’t. I just…can’t be around you guys anymore.”

Aang frowned. “You should know there’s no way I’m going to let that happen. We’re best friends.”

“After I just told you I’m in love with your wife?!”

He shrugged. “Like you said, you can’t help it. And it’s not like you’re trying to take her away from me.”

“I would never do that!”

“I know,” Aang replied. “I trust you. That’s why I don’t want to stop being your best friend.”

“But I can’t be around her. It hurts too much.” Zuko looked out the window.

“She would be miserable without you,” Aang insisted.

“She would be more miserable if she knew,” the Fire Lord muttered.

“How do you know that?” Aang asked. “You thought I was going to hate you and I don’t. How do you know how she’s going to feel?”

Zuko had to admit, the airbender had a point. Aang had surprised him with his reaction; maybe Katara would also. It was a risk, but at least there was a chance that it would turn out all right, whereas if he just stopped seeing her with no explanation, she would be hurt and confused. If he told her the truth there would at least be a chance she would be understanding, like Aang had been.

After a long moment, the firebender nodded. “Okay. I’ll tell her.” He wasn’t sure what good it would do, but it would at least take off the pressure of keeping his feelings a secret all the time.

“Come on,” Aang said, taking his friend by the arm and leading him out of the palace. They wound through the streets together until they got to the house which last night had been filled with company and gaiety. Now it was quiet, and remarkably clean. Zuko hesitated at the door, but Aang walked right in, subtly pulling his friend into the house also.

“Honey?” Aang called. “Zuko’s here.”

Katara came hurrying out of the kitchen with a grin on her face. There were circles under her eyes that suggested she didn’t get much sleep after the party, but her expression was warm and excited to see him. She ran to him and hugged him, which Zuko managed to stiffly return.

“Are you okay?” she asked, her face turning to concern. Zuko’s voice stuck in his throat, so Aang spoke up.

“He has something to tell you,” he said, to which Katara looked back up at the firebender in curiosity.

“What is it?” she asked.

Zuko froze, and suddenly found he couldn’t breathe. He glanced at Aang for support, but the airbender was already headed out of the room. The Fire Lord silently begged him not to go, but Aang disappeared into the kitchen, leaving him alone with Katara looking up at him with those huge blue eyes.

“What did you want to tell me?”

He looked back down at her in panic. How was he supposed to do this? Terrified of her reaction, he tried to take a deep breath, and ended up almost choking on his own saliva. Turning his head, he coughed once, then glanced back down to find her still watching him curiously.

“I—um,” he started, then paused, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. “You…hmm.” He stopped again, unsure of how to do this. “Do you remember when we were in prison together in Ba Sing Se?”

Katara looked confused. “Yes?”

“Well, you offered to heal my scar.”

“Yes?”

He took another breath, looking away. “Well… that’s when it started. No one had ever cared enough before to even try to heal my scar, or they all thought I deserved to have it forever. And maybe they were right. Back then I was a pretty horrible person.” He flinched, but continued. “But the way you would offer to help me after I had been so awful for so long,” he glanced back at her, “It made something happen. It changed something in me. I know it didn’t show at the time, but it’s because I didn’t understand then.”

“Understand what?” Katara asked, watching him with wide eyes.

Zuko finally turned to face her. “The way I felt,” he replied. “The way I still feel.”

Katara was staring at him at this point, waiting anxiously for him to finish. He met her blue eyes with his golden ones, took one last deep breath, and murmured, “I love you, Katara.”


	4. An Idea

The silence between them was palpable. Katara’s eyes shone as she stared up at him, processing what he had just told her. As time continued to stretch on and she did not move, Zuko finally broke eye contact and forced out a breath. The longer she didn’t speak, the more it felt like his throat would close up.

“Please say something,” he begged, looking back down at her.

Katara blinked once, twice. “I… don’t know what to say. Aang knows about this?”

“He’s the one who convinced me to tell you,” Zuko replied.

“Were you not going to tell me?”

“No.”

The waterbender frowned in concern. “That isn’t good for you,” she said, and Zuko rolled his eyes.

“That’s exactly what your husband said.”

“Well, he is the Avatar. He usually knows what he’s talking about.”

It was so characteristic of both of them to try and put his welfare above their own happiness. Zuko’s priorities were elsewhere. He looked away. “I just don’t want to ruin anything.”

Katara paused for a moment. “This does change things,” she said slowly, her eyes drifting in thought.

Zuko flinched. He had been right; this was a mistake. He shouldn’t have confessed to either of them. The way she looked now, lost in her thoughts, made him think he was seconds away from being banished from her presence, their friendship severed. He had lost it all, again, and all because he couldn’t keep his mouth shut.

“But I’m glad you told me.”

Confused, Zuko looked back at her. She was watching him seriously. “What?” he asked. He couldn’t fathom why she would be pleased to hear that her close friend had other feelings for her, especially when she already had a husband.

“You mean the world to me, Zuko, you don’t think I want to know how you’re feeling? This is why you were so upset last night, isn’t it?” Katara watched his face with compassion in her eyes.

The Fire Lord nodded mutely.

“I don’t ever want to see you hurt like that.”

Zuko shrugged. “I’m used to it,” he muttered. It was true; he’d been dealing with the pain of loving Katara for ten years now. And, of course, the three years leading up to the end of the war had been absolute hell. No, he was no stranger to emotional torment.

“Besides,” he said aloud. “There’s nothing we can do about it.” He already knew he would never stop loving her, but he also knew that Katara would never stop loving Aang. He would never be what the Avatar was for her. The situation was hopeless.

Katara frowned and shook her head. “There’s never nothing we can do,” she said. Suddenly, she perked up and looked at Zuko with a hopeful smile. “I know someone who gives _great_ relationship advice. Aang?” she called to the kitchen.

“Yeees?” her husband replied, coming back into the room.

“Help me pack up Appa. We’re going to see Aunt Wu!”

That name didn’t ring a bell for Zuko, but Aang scratched his beard. “The fortune teller?” the Avatar clarified, and his wife nodded eagerly.

“Even if she can’t really tell the future, she’s seen a lot in her time. I bet she’ll know something that could help us.”

Aang thought for a moment, then shrugged in agreement. “You may be right,” he said. “It’s worth a shot. I’ll go get Appa ready.” He leaned down and kissed Katara’s cheek, then headed out the side door to the huge, luxurious stable they had built for the sky bison, leaving Zuko and Katara alone together again.

There was silence; she watched him and he watched his feet. Finally, as though she could sense how tense he still was (and she probably could; she knew him well enough to interpret his moods based on his posture), Katara walked over to him, ducking her head to try and meet his eyes as he continued to stare at the floor.

“Hey. It’s gonna be okay.”

Zuko turned his head unhappily. “How do you know?”

“Oh, come on, we can’t be the first people in history to be in this situation. If anyone has seen this before and knows a solution, it’s Aunt Wu.” She paused for a moment, frowning. “Zuko, please look at me,” she murmured.

The Fire Lord flinched a little when he heard the hint of pain in her voice. He knew she didn’t like seeing him this miserable, but at this point he didn’t see a way out. It was the way things had always been, and the way things always would be. But he couldn’t disappoint her when she asked for something, so he steeled himself and forced his golden eyes to meet her blue ones.

The softness in her eyes made his stomach erupt in butterflies, but he found that now that he was looking at her, he couldn’t look away. He could usually keep his façade up around her, but when she gazed at him like that, with tenderness and affection, it made his knees weak. That tiny ounce of closeness was all it took to turn him to jelly. It made him want to pull her into his arms and—

As the thought crossed his mind, Katara hurried forward and, without warning, threw her arms around him. He jumped at the contact, surprised by the rush of adrenaline that hit his brain. The two of them were no strangers to hugs; they hugged as friends all the time. But this time, it felt very different. Every sensation of the contact between them felt stronger than it ever had, and he found it only intensified when finally he gave in and hugged her back. She squeezed him hard when she felt him return her embrace.

“It’s going to be all right,” she whispered, and for that one second, Zuko believed her.


	5. Aunt Wu

Appa sailed east at a steady clip, and Aang called back from his seat on the sky-bison’s head, “We should be there soon!”

Zuko glanced up from where he had been watching the ocean pass beneath them, remembering the three years spent on those waters searching for the Avatar. Sometimes he couldn’t believe it had been ten years since then. Bringing himself back to the present, he asked, “Who is this Aunt Wu?”

“We met her on our journey to the North Pole, back when Aang and I were just beginning to learn waterbending,” Katara explained. “She predicts the future, sort of. At least I believe she does.”

“I mean, she told you you’d marry me, so she’s been right about at least one thing,” Aang called from Appa’s head.

Katara blinked and looked over at him. “How do you know that? She told me privately.”

“Eh,” her husband shrugged with a playful grin. “I just know. It’s an Avatar thing.” And he turned to face forward again.

Zuko looked unimpressed. “I don’t believe in fortune tellers,” he grumbled, sinking into his seat and crossing his arms. “This is a waste of time.”

“Try to keep an open mind,” Katara advised.

When they landed, Zuko looked around with a feeling of familiarity. He had stopped here, briefly. He remembered the square, and the building at the back of it. Memories flooded back to him: the necklace, the huge creature with its incredible nose and poisoned tongue, and the old woman who had called Uncle Iroh handsome. She had asked if he wanted to hear his fortune. Well, he supposed that’s what he was here for now.

A woman of about twenty with stiff pigtails opened the door, only a little at first, but she recognized Aang’s tattoos immediately and slid it wide. “Aang!” she cried, and rushed to meet him. He smiled and took her hands.

“It’s good to see you, Meng.”

The girl glanced at Katara and forced a smile. “Hello again,” she said flatly.

“Hi Meng,” Katara replied, coming forward to give her a hug, which the pigtailed woman reluctantly returned. Pulling away quickly, Meng looked over at the third member of the group that had arrived on the doorstep.

“And am I correct in presuming you are Fire Lord Zuko?” She asked cordially, and Zuko nodded, mechanically offering a hand.

“It’s good to meet you,” he said drily, barely trying to conceal the fact that he didn’t want to be there.

Meng didn’t seem to notice, taking his hand and squeezing it gently before releasing him. “Aunt Wu knew you’d be coming.” Zuko waited until she had turned around to lead them inside before he rolled his eyes.

The little party followed her into the waiting room and seated themselves on the cushions provided there.

“Tea?” Meng offered to Aang and Zuko, practically ignoring Katara. “Or can I interest you in some of Aunt Woo’s special bean curd puffs? I’ve been learning to make them myself, so—” she giggled, “—I guess they’re _my_ special bean curd puffs now!”

With a smile that Zuko could tell was slightly forced, Aang replied, “Sure. I’d love to try your puffs.”

Meng grinned and hurried off eagerly, leaving the three of them alone for the moment. The Fire Lord shifted uncomfortably on his pillow, wishing they could just leave. He didn’t need some crazy old woman to tell him he’d just have to deal with things the way they were; he already knew there was nothing to be done. There was absolutely no point in being here.

Returning with a little tray, Meng set out three steaming cups of tea and a large bowl of slightly dark brown bean curd puffs. “Aunt Wu should be ready for you shortly,” she said, still looking exclusively at the two men when she spoke, not so much as glancing at Katara.

Aang waited until the assistant had disappeared back into the house before he ventured to take a bite of a puff. He chewed thoughtfully. “They’re not so bad,” he commented.

Curious, Zuko also took a puff and nibbled it. The outside was burnt and the inside had no flavor. Clearly, Meng had not had enough practice yet making the snack on her own. The Fire Lord set the rest of his puff aside and picked up his tea, but he set that down also when he discovered the leaves had been thoroughly scalded and the beverage was horribly bitter. He frowned, hoping the food wasn’t an omen of how poorly this visit would go.

Finally, the door to the back of the house opened and a couple emerged, holding hands and smiling. Zuko bit back an audible grumble at the sickly sweetness of their affection. Silently, he tried to convince himself that it bothered him for some other reason than because he wished he could hold Katara’s hand like that without the crushing shame that always accompanied such desires.

It took several more minutes before an old woman who looked to be in her sixties opened the door again and glided into the waiting room to address them. “Welcome back, Avatar,” she said in a smooth, aged voice as the three stood up from their cushions. Aang smiled and nodded to her. Then the woman turned to Katara and offered her hands. “I see you married your powerful bender,” she observed as the waterbender hurried forward to greet her.

“I sure did,” Katara replied, but then her smile faltered.

“But you have more questions about love, don’t you?” Aunt Wu predicted. “Perhaps involving this young man?” She turned to Zuko and nodded her head. “Honored to meet you, Fire Lord.”

Instinctively, Zuko bowed his head in response.

“How did you know?” Katara asked eagerly. Too eagerly, in Zuko’s opinion. She really did put too much faith in this woman.

Aunt Wu smiled indulgently and gestured for the three of them to come into the back room and sit down. Once everyone was settled, the fortune teller looked directly of Katara. “Now, young lady. When I read your palm the first time, I discovered something. Something I did not reveal to you at the time.”

Katara frowned. “Why would you hide something from me?” she demanded.

“You were not ready for the knowledge at that time. It would have confused you to the point of distraction, and you had much more important things to worry about at the time. This is something you needed to grow into and discover for yourself.”

“Discover what?” Aang inquired.

The old woman was still looking at Katara. “Look at your palm,” she instructed. Katara lifted her hand and examined it.

“What am I looking for?”

“This is your love line,” Aunt Wu explained, reaching across and pointing at a crease in Katara’s skin. “Or rather,” she paused, then continued. “ _These_ are your love _lines._ ”

“What?” Katara said, and squinted carefully at her hand. “There…there’s two lines.”


	6. Parallel Lines

All of them stared at Katara’s hand in confusion for a long moment. She was correct; in the center of her palm there was not a single line running across it, but two parallel creases in the skin.

“So? What does that mean?” Zuko asked impatiently.

“What do you suppose?” Aunt Wu prompted.

Zuko scoffed with frustration. He was here to know what _she_ thought, not what he did. He already knew his own thoughts. Everyone else frowned in concentration. Finally, Aang spoke up.

“Two lines, two loves?” he mused. “But they’re parallel, not sequential.”

“Exactly.”

Katara looked up. “Two loves at the same time. Is that possible?”

The old woman nodded with a smile. “Many people find fulfillment with more than one person at once, but it is a very personal choice. I suggest you take some time to examine yourself and discern the nature of your true feelings toward this young man.” She gestured at Zuko.

Katara’s eyes glazed over as she thought, considering the fortune teller’s words. Zuko watched her face for a moment, but the anxiety became too much and he had to look away.

“However,” Aunt Wu continued, “This decision will strongly impact the lives of those you love. If you decide to love them both at once, you must consider both of their feelings, as well.”

The confused waterbender glanced back and forth between the men seated on either side of her. Aang watched her carefully, while Zuko stole glance after glance at her in between staring at the floor.

“Polyamory, or the state of loving more than one person, is not a decision to be made lightly. If you take this path, it will require an intense effort from all three of you to maintain balance. This is something the three of you must discuss at length. I suggest you all go home and spend some time alone, and then come together to talk.”

The three of them nodded slowly, all of them lost in their thoughts. Aunt Wu smiled warmly at the three of them, then called out, “Meng?”

The assistant appeared almost instantly, sliding the door open and coming into the room.

“It was wonderful to see you all,” the fortune teller said to her guests, as Meng took her by the wrists and helped to her feet. “And if you have more questions after you have spoken among yourselves, feel free to come see me.”

The trio of travelers stood up as well. “Thank you, Aunt Wu,” Katara said, coming forward to clasp the old woman’s hands. The fortune teller nodded graciously.

“Not at all, my dear.”

The waterbender looked from Aang to Zuko. “Let’s go home,” she said, and headed for the door.

They spent the flight back in silence. Zuko stared down at the world going by below, confused and unhappy. The Fire Lord still wasn’t satisfied; just because Aunt Wu had suggested it didn’t mean Katara would ever actually view him that way. He was positive that after she had had time to think about it, she would find she didn’t have that kind of feeling toward him. He could feel Katara watching him, looking between him and Aang as he drove Appa back to the capitol of the Fire Nation. It made him uneasy.

When they arrived at the palace, Zuko hugged Aang goodbye, then turned awkwardly to Katara, unsure if it would be appropriate to touch her at all. She, however, did not hesitate to wrap him in a tight embrace, temporarily burying her face in his chest. He held her loosely, not wanting to give in to his impulses. When she pulled away, he suddenly felt cold all over and longed to pull her back into his arms, but instead he just turned away with a short, “Goodbye.”

“Come over in the morning and we’ll talk,” Katara called as the two of them climbed back onto Appa for the short flight back to their house.

Safe in his room, Zuko collapsed onto his bed and stared up at the velvet canopy. It didn’t seem possible that both Katara and Aang would be alright with the idea of—what had she called it? Polyamory? The word felt unusual, just like the entire situation. Everything seemed new and uncomfortable.

It wouldn’t be publicly acceptable, of course. Even if Katara decided she did want to love them both, they would have to keep it a secret. Nowhere in the world was this polyamory a common thing, and for world leaders like the Avatar and the Fire Lord to be involved such a complicated relationship, it could cause problems with their public image.

Then there was his relationship with Aang to consider. How would the Avatar feel about his wife loving another person? Would this affect their friendship? Watching Aang and Katara together had never bothered him in the sense that he wanted to take her away from him; seeing the two of them happy made him happy, even on top of the pain of wanting to be with Katara the way that Aang was. He had never wanted to take his place, because he knew he couldn’t.

As hard as Zuko fought to be rational, there was still a tiny glimmer of hope in the back of his mind that somehow this might work out. That maybe Katara could love him the way he loved her, and that Aang wouldn’t mind. It seemed like having his cake and eating it too, but he couldn’t extinguish the flame of possibility.

That night, Zuko found sleep to be impossible. Every time he dozed off, his mind was immediately filled with dreams of her, and he jerked himself awake. He couldn’t allow even his subconscious to be too optimistic. Instead he chose to toss and turn in his huge bed, a bed far too big for any one person. He couldn’t understand how the previous Fire Lords had managed to get a good night’s sleep in such a gigantic bed. Of course, they had probably had company.

Finally, the sun peeked through his curtains and he rolled out of bed, blinking as he flung the windows open to let the morning shine into the room. He knew Aang and Katara would already be awake; the Avatar woke up early to feed Appa. They were perfectly capable of hiring someone to take care of the sky bison, but Aang insisted. Zuko dressed himself, then dragged his feet down the hall to the kitchen. Finding he had no appetite that morning, the Fire Lord decided to have only a single cup of tea before heading out.

When he reached their door, he habitually knocked five times in a rhythmic pattern. They called it their secret knock, and it was how everyone in the group announced their presence. Katara opened the door with a smile. “Good morning, Zuko. Thank you for coming.” She stood aside to let him in.

Walking inside, Zuko found Aang waiting in the foyer with a steaming teacup in each hand, one of which he offered to him. Taking the cup of tea, the Fire Lord glanced between them uncomfortably.

“Why don’t we sit at the table?” Katara offered, and both men nodded, taking their tea into the kitchen.

Once everyone was settled, Katara looked at Zuko. “Aang and I talked a lot last night,” she started.

Zuko found he couldn’t look at her without the butterflies in his stomach threatening to overwhelm his senses, so he stared at his tea instead. “And?” he prompted uncomfortably, dreading the answer.

“We want to try polyamory with you,” she declared.

Zuko looked up in surprise. He must have looked as shocked at his felt, because Katara faltered.

“Is that okay with you?” she asked.

The Fire Lord hesitated, trying to understand what had just happened. “Y-you want to love me?” he asked breathlessly, finally daring to hope it could be true.

Katara nodded with a smile. “I already love you so much. I think it would be easy to fall _in_ love with you."

Suddenly Zuko felt his chest expand, and an unfamiliar sensation of intense joy rushed over him. After all night of convincing himself it wouldn’t happen and preparing himself to be let down, now she was looking at him with a sincere smile on her face, telling him it was all right. He let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding, and allowed a relieved smile to spread over his face.

Glancing over Katara’s head, he looked at Aang, who was smiling also. “You’re good with this?” he asked, just to make sure. The Avatar nodded.

“You’ve been a part of our family for years. You’re just filling a new role now. If you decide that’s what you want,” he added.

Zuko looked back and forth between them, and he knew they both were full of anxiety waiting for his response. Finally, he took a deep breath and nodded. “Yes,” he said at last. “That is what I want.”

Katara and Aang let out a collective breath, and she threw her arms around his shoulders. Zuko suddenly found his face covered with a giant grin as he eagerly hugged her back, for the first time unafraid of his feelings. Glancing over at Aang, the firebender was put at ease to see him watching them with a smile on his face. Delighted and relieved, Zuko buried his face in Katara’s hair and closed his eyes.

She wanted to love him. And for the first time ever, Zuko allowed himself to love her without restraint.


	7. Plans

Zuko held onto Katara for as long as he felt was appropriate, then with one last inhale he pulled away. Katara beamed up at him, and he felt a similar expression tugging at the corners of his lips as well. Glancing at Aang, the Fire Lord was overjoyed to see the Avatar watching him with a small smile on his face.

For a moment no one said anything, all three of them too happy to speak. Finally, Zuko broke the silence. “So now what?”

Aang and Katara both blinked, as if they hadn’t thought that far ahead either. They all looked back and forth at one another, wondering what the next step should be.

After a little while, Aang spoke up. “Why don’t you two do something together that’s just for you?”

“Like a date?” Katara clarified, and the Avatar nodded.

“If you want to be a couple, you’ll need some time to be alone together. Why not go somewhere together?”

Zuko and Katara glanced at each other. His stomach filled with butterflies at the idea of being alone with her, now that the ice had been broken and she approved of his feelings. Up to that point, anytime they had been alone, Zuko had always been impossibly tense, terrified he would put his foot in his mouth somehow or let slip the way he felt. Now she knew how he felt, and she was okay with it. She even seemed to return those feelings. The Fire Lord felt a smile spread across his face. “I’d love that.”

Katara nodded. “So would I,” she murmured, and Aang grinned eagerly.

A date with Katara seemed almost too good to be true. Then, in a flash of anxiety, he realized that probably meant he needed to plan something. When he and Mai had been together, he had had to decide what they did every time they went out. Usually she had been fine with just hanging out, but when they went on a real date, Mai liked to be impressed, and she was difficult to impress.

With Katara, however, he had no idea what she would like. It occurred to him they couldn’t do anything too public; being seen alone together might raise suspicions among the citizens. Where could he take her that they would not be seen? “W-what would you like to do on our—” Zuko almost choked and had to swallow hard to get the word out, “—date?”

Katara and Aang glanced at each other. “Why don’t you let us think of something?” the Avatar offered, and his wife bobbed her head in agreement.

“We’ll come up with an idea,” she promised, taking Zuko’s hands in hers. He shivered involuntarily at the contact. She smiled at him.

“When?”

“Is tonight too soon?” Katara asked her husband, turning to look at him without letting go of Zuko.

With a grin, Aang shook his head. “Tonight isn’t too soon at all. We can think of something for around dinnertime.”

Involuntarily, a wide smile crossed Zuko’s face. The prospect of being alone with Katara in a romantic setting, combined with the sensation of her hands holding his, was enough to almost overwhelm his senses. For a moment, he couldn’t speak from happiness. Finally, he cleared his throat. “Tonight is perfect,” he murmured, and both of his friends beamed with excitement.

“Great!” Aang stood up from his chair, leaving his tea on the table. “Well, we’ve got to get planning!” he declared as his companions also rose from their seats. “We can come get you at sunset.”

The little group walked to the front door, then paused on the porch. Zuko smiled softly at the two of them, finally at ease. He turned to Aang first and pulled him into a tight hug. “Thank you for this,” he whispered. The Avatar hugged him back.

“You make her happy,” he replied, pulling away so he could look Zuko in the face. “That makes me happy. You have my full support.”

Zuko grinned at his best friend. Then, before he could even turn all the way around, Katara rushed into his arms, squeezing him around the waist. He returned her embrace with equal enthusiasm, a tangible warmth growing in his chest with every second longer they touched. It felt like finally taking off his armor at the end of a long battle, a huge weight lifted from his tired shoulders and discarded. He felt free, as if for the first time in ten years he was allowed to simply feel the way he felt, without the need to hide his emotions at every turn. It was incredibly liberating.

Reluctantly, he allowed Katara to pull away from him, and returned her smile when she beamed up at him. “See you at sunset,” she murmured, and Zuko nodded.

“Sunset,” he affirmed, then turned and walked down the steps of their front porch.

It was a short walk from the Avatar’s house to the palace, but Zuko took his time along the way. He wondered what Aang and Katara would cook up for their first date. Of course, he reasoned, it didn’t really matter what they did; as long as he was with Katara, he didn’t care where he was or what was happening around him. He would be happy doing literally anything with her.

He spent the morning pacing the palace, gazing out windows and exploring back corridors until he decided it was time to get ready. Even though he was on the far side of the palace, he took the long way around to get to his chambers so he didn’t have to walk through the gardens. Although he had been Fire Lord for ten years and had lived in the palace the entire time, he never went in the gardens. The memories of his mother were too strong, and it hurt too much. So he took the extra time and went around.

He spent nearly an hour in front of the mirror, trying to shave and style his hair without help from the servants, in case they asked why he needed to look so nice. However, he discovered it was much more difficult than it looked. Eventually, he gave up and called a single page to comb his hair, one who had been with him for a long time and whom he trusted not to stick his nose where it didn’t belong.

Once he was satisfied with his hair, he moved to his closet to pick out what to wear. He deliberated for what seemed like forever, trying to choose something appropriate. His best robes would be too formal, but everyday wear would not be nearly formal enough. Finally, he pulled his third nicest outfit and wrangled it on by himself.

By the time the sun touched the horizon, Zuko was already pacing anxiously in the throne room. The butterflies in his stomach threatened to carry him away with every step as he waited for his date and her husband to arrive.

The nervousness started to overshadow the excitement as the sun continued to sink and his steward did not appear to announce their presence. They were habitually very prompt; it was unlike them to be late. Was something wrong? Had they changed their minds? He had no way of knowing, and that scared him.

Zuko was so consumed in his fears that he didn’t hear the sound of his steward entering the room, and he jumped unceremoniously when the servant announced smoothly, “The Mighty Katara.”


End file.
